ZZ & SIMONE’S (1540 S Lumpkin St., 706-395-6556, zzandsimones.com): It’s hard for me to believe that Shae and Ryan Sims’ suavely casual Italian restaurant has only been open for about three years, so quickly and smoothly did it become an established part of the dining scene in Athens. One thing I’ve appreciated about it is its commitment to stability from the perspective of a customer. It’s not always tinkering. That doesn’t mean the menu never changes, but the experience isn’t aggravating. After expanding into the space next door, which previously housed Bitty and Beau’s Coffee, the restaurant has also added Sunday brunch, and it’s on brand that both the new space and the new meal feel like they’ve always been there.
Nothing on the menu is inexpensive, and you may widen your eyes at being encouraged to add a quarter ounce of paddlefish caviar to your meal for an upcharge of $20, but the prices reflect the commitment to quality. The same is true of the bagel tower pricing: $18 for a single bagel with all the fixings ($32 for two, $60 for four). On the other hand, it’s a damn delicious bagel. The presentation is akin to a seafood tower or a high tea, with a three-tiered serving dish that contains bagel (everything, sesame or poppyseed), herbed cream cheese, slices of tomato, red onion and cucumber, capers and a beautiful fan of Nova lox. You may end up with tiny seeds scattered across your place setting and seat, but Shae has always been an excellent baker, and it really is a very good bagel. French toast, an absolute slab of lovely bread, comes with jam as well as syrup and as much powdered sugar as you want; it’s a sugar bomb to be sure, but not one that leaves you the desire to brush your teeth immediately. Latkes (three or five to an order) meet your palate with a kiss of salt and crunch and onion, accented by rich sour cream and/or housemade applesauce.
Don’t skip the drinks. A sort of nonalcoholic coffee cocktail blooms in your mouth with orange and almond, so good and complex that it pulls a little focus from the food. A spicy Paloma comes with a chilified salt rim. Spritzes abound. All of it adds up to a very nice special occasion brunch, carefully tailored to produce a feeling of ease and comfort. Reservations for big weekends are advised. Brunch runs Sundays from 10:30 a.m.–2 p.m.
THE FOOD TRUCK STATION (211 Tallassee Road, 706-715-1374, @foodtruckstationathens): Once upon a time, many moons ago, Cali N Tito’s (then known as Caliente Cab) occupied this weirdly magical space next to a creek, just past where Mitchell Bridge Road segments Tallassee Road from Oglethorpe Avenue. Since then, a series of restaurants have come and gone, none quite recapturing the chaotic magic of twinkly lights and pumping music. The Food Truck Station, a new Venezuelan restaurant open from 9 a.m.–11 p.m. most days (until 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday), is in the ballpark. Yes, there are a bunch of food trucks in the parking lot. No, you really don’t order from them. Contrary to appearances and name, the Food Truck Station mostly behaves like a normal restaurant, one where you sit at a table and order your food, although weekends can bring a dessert stand operating just outside the entrance. You’re best served to drive just past the restaurant and park in the lot with signs for a tire retailer, then walk back up to the sidewalk to get to the restaurant (signs discourage using the bridge across the creek).
The menu you find online tends to be different from what you find at the restaurant, but both tilt heavily toward meats and starches, without a lot of spice except in the Mexican dishes. The pepito grill is a massive sandwich designed to give you a little taste of most everything: slices of beef and chicken, sausage, cheese, fried shoestring potatoes, creamy sauces, lettuce and tomato, all tightly packed into a Cuban-style roll. Arepas (split, stuffed cornmeal patties that may encase chicken, beef or pork) are lighter and seem to be made with a finer-ground cornmeal than usual. The Honduran enchiladas will send you down an internet rabbit hole that will challenge everything you thought you knew about enchiladas, which are tremendously variable. More akin to a tostada, they come heaped with ground beef, a cabbage and beet slaw, halved hard-boiled eggs and a dusting of powdered cheese. Burgers are a point of emphasis, too, and although they are a Wetnap-requiring mess to eat, they are fun. Ice-cold desserts are available out of a refrigerated case, including flan, tres leches and marquesa (a chocolate icebox cake). A big cooler of papelon con limon dispenses mighty sweet but oddly compelling drinks. The menu is huge, including a section for kids. For now, adult beverages are limited to beer, but with live music on weekends, the owners plan to expand into cocktails. Twinkly lights and Venezuelan music videos come standard.
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